Movable guide rail structure for railway flatcars



Sheet April 29, 1969 w. E. Q'LEARY ET Al.

MOVABLE GUIDE RAIL STRUCTURE FOR RAILWAY FLAT CARS Filed June 29, 1967Q\ A AL. m LL' N ATTORNEY April 29, 1969 w E. O'LEARY ETAL MOVABLE GUIDERAIL STRUCTURE FOR RAILWAY FLAT CARS sheet 2 of 1o Filed June 29, 1967April 29, 1969 w E, OLEARY ETAL 3,440,971

MovABLE GUIDE RAIL STRUCTURE FOR RAILWAY FLAT CARS Sheet Filed June 29.1967 sheet 4 of 1o Aprll 29, 1969 w. E. OLEARY ETAL MOVABLE GUIDE RAILSTRUCTURE FOR RAILWAY FLAT CARS Filed June 29. 1967 April 29, 1969 w EO'LEARY ET AL. 3,440,971

MovABLE GUIDR RAIL STRUCTURE FOR RAILWAY FLAT CARS Filed June 29. 1967Sheet of 1o April 29, 1969 w E oLL-:ARY ETAL MOVABLE GUIDE RAILSTRUCTURE FOR RAILWAY FLAT CARS Filed June 29. 1967 April 29, 1969 w. E.oLEARY ETAL MOVABLE GUIDE RAIL STRUCTURE FOR RAILWAY FLAT CARS SheetFiled June 29. 1967 Sheet 8 of l0 Apnl 29, 1969 w. E. OLEARY ETALMOVABLE GUIDE HAIL STRUCTURE A FOR RAILWAY FLAT CARS Filed June 29, 19e?April 29, 1969 W E OLEARY ETAL MOVABLE GUIDE RAIL STRUCTURE FOR RAILWAYFLAT CARS of l0 Sheet Filed June 29. 1967 April 29, 1969 w E, OLEARY ETAL MovABLE GUIDE RAIL STRUCTURE FOR RAILWAY FLAT CARS of lO Sheet FiledJlune 29. 1967 Lft United States Patent O Charles, and Tom C.Buckthorpe, St. Louis County,

Mo., assignors to ACF Industries, Incorporated, New York, N.Y., acorporation of New Jersey Filed June 29, 1967, Ser. No. 650,000 Int. Cl.B655 1/22; B61d 45/00 U.S. Cl. 105 368 3 Claims ABSTRACT 0F THEDISCLOSURE A guide rail for a railway tlatcar having a plurality of railsections arranged in end-to-end relation to form a continuous guide railwith some of the guide rail sections movable between a load supportposition transversely of the car and a guide position longitudinally ofthe car. Themovable sections have pockets on their outer ends when inthe transverse position to receive load restraining means such as sidestakes or the like. The sections are of a box-shaped cross section andhave a slotted side to receive a tie-down structure or a support fornailing strip.

Background and description of the invention Copendngapplication Ser. No.602,651,11ed Dec. 19, 1966, and entitled, Guide Rail Structure forRailway Flat Cars, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated bythis reference, discloses a guide rail structure in which guide railsections are movable between a guide position extending longitudinallyof the car for transporting roadway vehicles and a load supportingposition extending transversely of the car for supporting loads, such aslumber or containers.

The present invention is directed to 'a specific guide rail sectionwhich is adapted for use with the arrangement illustrated in applicationSer. No. 602,651. The guide rail section which is movable between alongitudinal and transverse position with respect to the car deck has astake pocket on an end thereof adapted to receive a stake or the like torestrain loads supported on the rail section when in load supportingposition. Further, the guide rail sections are of a generallyrectangular box-shaped section with a slotted side to receive a tie-downstructure or other support structures. The structures received by theguide rail sections may be adjusted at various intervals along thelength of the guide rail section to accommodate Varying load conditionsencountered. To secure the movable rail section of one embodiment of theinvention, a hook-shaped lug on the underside of the section is receivedwithin an elongate opening or slot in the deck and upon a longitudinalmovement of the section, the lug engages the underside of the deck torestrain -movement of the section. A releasable lock holds the lug inposition and upon release of the lock, the rail section may be movedlongitudinally to disengage the lug permitting removal of the lug fromthe slot to allow pivotal movement of the rail section.

The invention accordingly comprises the constructions hereinafterdescribed, the scope of .the invention being indicated in the followingclaims.

In the accompanying drawings in which several of various possibleembodiments of the invention are illustrated,

FIGURE l is a plan of railway at car employing one embodiment of thepresent invention in which movable guide rail sections extendlongitudinally of the deck in end-to-end relation;

f. ICC

FIGURE 2 is a section taken generally along line 2 2 of FIGURE l andshowing the guide rail sections extending longitudinally of the railwaycar for guiding and centering roadway vehicles or the like on the deck.

FIGURE 3 is a section taken generally along line 3 3 of FIGURE l andshowing the guide rail section extending transversely of the railway carand adapted to carry lading thereon;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged top plan of a portion of the deck illustratingthe movement of a guide rail section between a position extendinglongitudinally of the deck and a position extending transversely of thedeck;

FIGURE 5 is a top plan of a guide rail section and showing a slottedupper side;

FIGURE 6 is a section taken generally along line 6 6 of FIGURE 5;

FIGURE 7 is a section taken generally along line 7 7 of FIGURE 6;

FIGURE 8 is an end elevation of the guide rail section shown in FIGURES5-7 looking generally along line 8 8 of FIGURE 6;

FIGURE 9 is a section taken generally along line 9 9 of FIGURE 6;

FIGURE 10 is a side elevation of the guide rail section of FIGURES 5-9in an unlocked and released position for pivotal movement betweentransverse and longitudinal positions on the railway car deck;

FIGURE 11 is a fragmentary plan view of the slotted upper Side of theguide rail section having a tie-down structure mounted therein;

FIGURE 12 is a top plan view, partly in section, illustrating anotherembodiment of the guide rail section in which a different lockingmechanism is employed;

FIGURE 13 is a longitudinal section of the guide rail section shown inFIGURE 12;

FIGURE 14 is a section taken generally along line 14-14 of FIGURE 13;

FIGURE 15 is a section taken generally along line 15 15 of FIGURE 14;

FIGURE 16 is a top plan of a pair of guide rail sections employingremovable supports for a nailing support member such as a wooden timber,the support being mounted within the slotted upper sides of the guiderail sections; and

FIGURE 17 is a partial side elevation illustrating the nailing supportmember shown in FIGURE 16.

Corresponding reference characters illustrate corresponding partsthroughout the several views of the drawings.

Referring now to the drawings for a better understanding of thisinvention and more particularly to FIGURES 1-11, a railway flat car isindicated generally at 10 and has a generally at deck 12. If desired, acollapsible trailer hitch indicated in broken lines at 14 in FIGURE 1may be mounted on deck 12. Hitch 14 is movable between an erect positionto secure the kingpin of a trailer and a collapsed inoperable position.

Mounted on deck 12 is the guide rail structure forming the presentinvention and comprising a pair of spaced generally parallel guide railsindicated generally at 16 and extending longitudinally of deck 12 asshown in FIGURE 1 for guiding the wheels of roadway vehicles along thedeck. Each guide rail 16 includes a plurality of guide rail sections orsegments 18 arranged in an end-to- 3 length of flat car 10. Bolsterstructure 28 is illustrated in FIGURE 2.

Segments 18 are mounted for movement between a direction extendinglongitudinally of deck 12 and a direction extending transversely of deck12 as indicated by a pair of sections 18 in FIGURE l and as shown inFIG. URE 3. In the transverse position, guide rail sections 18 areadapted to support lading thereon, such as lumber, containers or thelike. Fixed center sections 30 may be secured to deck 12 and form acontinuation of guide rail section 18 when the sections are intransverse position.

For mounting the embodiment of the guide rail section 18 illustrated inFIGURES l-ll on deck 12, a generally triangular deck opening 34 and apair of elongate deck slots 36, 38 are provided for each rail section 18as shown specifically in FIGURE 4. Also, a pair of transverse abutmentstops 40 and a longitudinal abutment stop 42 are secured to deck 12 andextend upwardly from the deck surface to engage and limit the movementof an associated guide rail section 18.

Guide rail section 18 is generally box-shaped having vertical sides 44,an upper side or top 46, and a lower side or bottom 48. Extendingtransversely of lower side 48 are reinforcing base supports 50. Mountingon one base support 50 is apivot pin 52 extending through deck opening34.-,a'nd having a projecting lug 54 adjacent its lower end adapted toextend beneath deck 12 andathereby secure associated guide sectionV 18to the deck. A washer 56 'and cotter'pin V58 prevent removal of pivotpin 52. Pin 52 is of a diameter substantially smaller than opening 34and thus is free to move within opening 34 AVgas-shownvin-:broken linesin FIGURE 4, MountedV on the W55" otherehasesupportf50fand adaptedto-'extend'withinopen ings 36 or 38 is a securing pin 60 having a lug 62adapted to extend beneath deck 12 ask shown particularly in FIG- URE 6.Pins 52 and 60 are secured against rotation on base support'50. Mountedfor vertical movement into and out of deck openings 36, 38 is a wedge64. An angleshaped support 66 is secured to bottom side 48 and mountsrod 68 secured to wedge 64 for vertical movement. A cover 70 secured tothe upper end of rod 68 is received Within an opening 72 of upper side46 and is spaced from an end edge defining opening 72 suiciently topermit a pry bar or the like to be inserted within opening 72 beneathcover 70 for urging or prying rod 68 and wedge 64 upwardly fromopening`36 such as indicated in FIG- URE 10. Upon the forcing of pin 68to the position of FIGURE and the removal of wedge 64 from opening 36guide rail section 18, the end of section 18adjacent pin 60 may belifted to remove lug 62 from opening 36. Then, section 18 may bemanually pivoted in a horizontal direction about pin 52 to align lug 62vertically with opening 38. Thus, guide rail section 18 is pivoted aboutpin 52 for movement betweenv transverse and longitudinal positionsrelative t0 deck 12. When lug 62 is vertically aligned with opening 38,opening 38 receives lug 62 upon lowering of the tilted end of guide railsection 18. Then, guide rail section 18 may be slipped horizontallyuntil lug 62 is disposed beneath the underside of deck 12 and pin 60 isurged against the edge of opening 36. Wedge 64 may be pushed downwardlywithin opening 38 thereby to prevent horizontal movement of guide railsection 18 until wedge 64 has been removed.

As shown in FIGURE 4, pin 52 is moved within enlarged triangular opening34 upon movement of guide rail section 18 between transverse andlongitudinal positions. To move guide rail section 18 from itslongitudinal position in which opening 36 is engaged, to the transverseposition in which opening 38 is engaged, pin 52 is moved from an end ofopening 34 adjacent abutments 40 to its center position within opening34 upon the horizontal slipping of section 18 after removal of wedge 64from opening 36. In this position, abutments 40 and 42 are cleared bythe adjacent end of guide rail section 18 as the section is pivotedalong the arcs A indicated in broken lines in FIGURE 4. When guide railsection reaches its transverse position and lug 62is' received withinopening 38, the longitudinal slipping of guide rail section 18 positionssection 18 alongside abutment 42 with pin 52 being received the end ofopening 34 adjacent abutment 42. Abutments 40, 42 accurately positionguide rail sections 18 on deck 12.

Upper side 46 has an elongate central slot 74 therein with enlargedportions 76 at intervals along the length of slot 74. Adjacent flanges77 of upper side 46 deline slot 74. Mounted within slot 74 is a tie-downstructure generally indicated 78. Tie-down structure 78 may be of theretractable winch-type having a chain to secure loads or the like ondeck 12. As an example, reference is made to U.S. Patent No. 3,315,617dated April 25, 1967 which shows a suitable winch-type tie-downapparatus, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated by thisreference. Tie-down structure 78 in operable position extends aboveupper side 46 and has slide bars 79 engaging the upper surface oflianges 77 on top side 46 in a raised operable position. Teeth 80 arereceived by enlarged portions 76 and position the tie-down structure 78on guide rail structure 18 in addition to limiting longitudinal movementof tie-down structure 78 when in operable position. Tie-down structure78 in inoperable position is housed within guide rail structure 18 `andis supported on bottomside 48.

Referring particularly to FIGURE 3, guide rail section 18 has a stakepocket generally indicated 81 on its outer end. Stake pocket 81 has anopen top adapted to receive wooden post or stake S or the like andbottom 82 of stake pocket 81 supports the lower end-'ofpost-S;LadingL-sup portedcon'guideraiisewonslis-ltday posts ST another embodfment of a guide rail structure is illustrated. A box-shaped Referringnow to FIGURES 12"-15,

guide rail structure 84 is mounted on deck 12A for pivotal movementabout pivot pin 86 extending through a suitable deck opening. A lockingpin 88 having a lower T-hed lug 90 is mounted for vertical movement onupstanding bracket 92 secured to base support 93 of guide rail structure84. A suitable elongate deck opening 94 is adapted to receive lug 90 asshown in FIGURE 15. An actuating handle 96 is secured to pin 88 formanual rotation of pin 88. A slot 98 in side wall 100 of guide railstructure 84 receives handle 96 and permits handle'96 to extendoutwardly of side wall 100 for manual gripping. To release pin 88 forrotation of guide rail section 84, handle 96 is irst rotated to alignlug 90 with elongate deck opening 94 and is then moved upwardly withinend portion 102 of slot 98 thereby to raise pin 88 as shown in IFIGURE15. Lug 90 is thus removed from opening 94 to permit rotato'n of guiderail structure 84.

Referring to FIGURES 16 and 17, an additional employment of the guiderail structure comprising the present invention is illustrated in whicha support generally indicated 104 for a wooden guide member is mountedon a slotted guide railsection 18A. The. -upper support 104 is adaptedto tit-"onthe upper slotte'dside 106 of guide rail section 18A( and awooden guide member 108 is nailed thereto at 109. Guide member 108extends over a plurality of guide rail sections 18A arranged intransverse position on the deck and is adapted to restrain lateralmovementof loads supported on guide rail sections 18A. Slotted side 106has enlarged portions 110 which form flanges 112 therebetween. Support104 includes a vertical side 114 extending above guide rail structure18A and having nail receiving openings therein to receive nails 109.Stepped horizontal portions 116, 118 rest, respectively, above and belowlianges 112 as shown in FIGURE 17. Connecting vertical portion 120between horizontal portions 116, 118 extend within an adjacent enlargedslot portion 110. A vertical abutting end 122 on horizontal Y portion118 engages the underside of liange 112. Thus,

with guide rail section 18A extending transversely of deck 12A, support104 may be mounted within a selected enlarged slot portion 110 therebyto vary the width between wooden guide members 108 on opposite sides ofa railway car. Wooden guide members 108 would restrain the lateralmovement of unsecured loads, such as a unitized banded load of sheetmaterial or the like.

In view of the above, it will be seen that the several objects of theinvention are achieved and other advantageous results obtained.

As various changes could be made in the above constructions withoutdeparting from the scope of the invention, it is intended that allmatter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanyingdrawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limitingsense.

What is claimed is:

1. A railway at car comprising, a side sill along each side thereof, acontinuous at deck extending between the side sills, a pair of spaced,generally parallel rails extending longitudinally of the deck andprojecting above the deck, each of said rails including a plurality ofaligned sections arranged in a generally continuous end-to-end relation,means mounting at least several rail sections of each rail to the deckfor pivotal movement in a generally horizontal plane over the deckbetween the position in which the sections extend longitudinally of thedeck and a position in which the sections extend transversely of thedeck, said movable rail sections being of a hollow -boxshaped crosssection and of a length not substantially greater than the width of thedeck, some of said sections being slotted along the upper side thereofto form an elongate slot and having a generally horizontal llangedefining opposite sides of the slot, said slotted sections adapted toreceive a separate structure movable between an operable positionsupported on the flanges adjacent said elongate slot and projectingabove the associated section, and an inoperable position housed withinthe boxshaped cross section below said anges, said separate removablestructure comprising a generally angle shaped support extending inoperable position above the associated section having a horizontalportion supported on said flanges and a vertical portion extending abovethe associated section, said angle-shaped support including means toanchor the support on the flanges in operable position.

2. A railway at car comprising, a side sill along each side thereof, acontinuous llat deck extending between the side sills, a' pair ofspaced, generally parallel rails extending longitudinally of the deckand projecting above the deck, each of said rails including a pluralityof aligned sections arranged in a generally continuous end-to-endrelation, means mounting at least several rail sections of each rail tothe deck for pivotal movement in a generally horizontal plane over thedeck between the position in which the sections extend longitudinally ofthe deck and a position in which the sections extend transversely of thedeck, said movable rail sections being of a generally boxshaped crosssection and of a length not substantially greater than the width of thedeck, some of said sections being slotted along the upper side thereofto form an elongate slot and having a generally horizontal flangedefining opposite sides of the slot, and a separate support mounted onthe anges of a slotted rail section movable between an operable positionanchored to the anges adjacent the elongate slot and an inoperableposition housed within the associated movable rail section below theanges, said separate support having a vertical portion extending inoperable position above the associated rail section and adapted to havea separate load restraining member secured thereto.

3. A railway at car as set forth in claim 2 wherein at least some ofsaid movable sections have an upwardly opening pocket therein adjacenttheir outer ends when in transverse position and adapted to receive astake or the like therein for restraining loads supported on the movablesections.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,969,023 1/1961 Chapman et al.

3,070,042 12/ 1962 Dunlap.

3,092,044 6/ 1963 Reed.

3,294,354 12/1966 Batey 248-361 3,295,464 1/ 1967 Broling.

3,354,838 11/1967 Mowatt-Larssen 105-366 DRAYTON E. HOFFMAN, PrimaryExaminer.

U.S. Cl. X.R.

